Kim Clijsters

Paris, Feb 13: Clijsters had a tough match against the Estonia’s Kaia Kanepi as she won by 6-1, 7-5 in the Paris Open to regain the top spot and booked her place in the finals against the fourth seeded Czech Petra Kvitova. The Belgian already made sure that she is ahead of Dane Caroline Wozniacki by reaching in the top four on Monday. Though she was not in her best of touch but it was enough to beat the inconsistent third seed. “I’m really happy and excited to regain the No. 1 spot,” Clijsters said after receiving the trophy and a giant No. 1 made from different flowers.

In her Twitter messages, she posted that she was very proud that she achieved this feat in her second career, but she never expected that this would be happening really. The Belgian however has achieved the No.1 position three times earlier but not since 2006. She quit in May 2007 and married to US basketball player Brian Lynch before giving birth to her daughter, Jada, in February 2008. She made her comeback in August 2009 and since then she is giving competitive fight and won three Grand Slam titles and is the reigning champion at the US and Australian Opens.

Wozniacki, 20, is still not achieved the major title in her career. “I’m quite older and much experienced. I’m really enjoying all the things happening in different ways. I’m able to share my success with my bigger group and my team. That is what the most exciting part of this second career is,” Clijsters said. The 256 week stretch between Clijsters’ last spell at No.1 and the current one is the second longest in ATP or WTA history, beaten only by Serena Williams, who had 265 weeks.

Tags: Grand Slam, Kaia Kanepi, Kim Clijsters, Paris Open, Sports, Sports World, Tennis, World Sports, WTA Rankings